MEDIA MATTERS

Fox's Megyn Kelly: Enabler of racism

Mychal Massie is the former chairman of the National Leadership Network of Black Conservatives-Project 21 – a conservative black think tank located in Washington, D.C. He was recognized as the 2008 Conservative Man of the Year by the Conservative Party of Suffolk County, N.Y. He is a nationally recognized political activist, pundit and columnist. He has appeared on Fox News Channel, CNN, MSNBC, C-SPAN, NBC, Comcast Cable and talk-radio programming nationwide. A former self-employed business owner of more than 30 years, Massie's website is mychal-massie.com.

If a white male Fox News Channel contributor, in the course of a rather animated debate with a Muslim, called the Muslim a “towel-headed camel jockey” how long do you think that Fox contributor would remain with Fox? How about if a white male were debating a Chinese woman on Fox News and in the heat of debate he called her “slanty-eyed” or called her a “rice-eating husband stealer.” How long do you think that white male Fox contributor would last? In either of the hypothetical situations, how long do you think it would take before the white male Fox News contributor was offering mea culpa and telling people he has Muslim friends and that he loves the Chinese culture?

Speaking for the great number of fair-minded persons in America and around the world, we demand to know what the acceptable levels of racism are. We demand to know why the black racist, socialist, negress Jehmu Greene is given carte blanche to insult viewers and other Fox News contributors with impunity.

Perhaps Megyn Kelly can tell us what is inappropriate behavior for her show. Just days after giving Greene a pass for calling a white male guest a racist epithet, Kelly harshly condemned a white male guest when during the interview he referenced Joe Biden as a buffoon.

If a Fox News contributor were debating an issue with Kelly about, oh, let’s say, Sharon Bialek, let’s say the Fox contributor became frustrated with Kelly because she refused to clearly explain her relationship with Bialek when they were both in Chicago. Let’s say the Fox contributor, in the heat of the moment, called Kelly a name or names that referenced the old rumors of her being less than the cherubic paragon-of-virtue program host she pretends to be. Let’s say the Fox contributor referenced in monosyllabic terms that her promo shots were more suitable for Playboy than they are for a professional journalist. And let’s allow that said Fox News contributor could be male, female, black, white, Asian, or whatever.

Would Fox News frown upon that? Would Kelly offer up a tepid apology for the person who dared use those points as part of the discourse? My point is, we demand to know where the line of unacceptable racism and/or insult is, because it is clearly viewed differently for black racists like Jehmu Greene than it is for white males.

Think back not that long ago. Trent Lott, in a moment of jocularity, made what was meant to be an endearing statement of collegial respect for Sen. Strom Thurmond, and he was promptly excoriated. Lott was assailed to the point that he was ultimately forced to resign from his political career. So I think it fair for us to know why Greene is permitted to make unambiguous racist epithets part of her on-air commentary with impunity.

In truth, I’ve never had cheering respect for Megyn Kelly, not that it would bother her, but I’ve always viewed her as scarlet and disingenuous. And I have the deepest lack of respect for a professional woman who trades upon her T&A to further her popularity, as promotion shots of her indicate. But there is another factor I view as being only a half-step above apostasy and that is the act of not speaking out when a situation demands it.

I have said many times that I do not share the respect for Jack Nicklaus and Arnie Palmer that most golf fans do. And my reasons are simple. Nicklaus and Palmer were the giants, the titans of golf; they ruled the golf world like no others in the zenith of their time. Yet outside those carefully coifed and immaculately manicured greens and fairways there were golfers who may have been their equals, or – who’s to say? – perhaps even betters, that were denied entry into certain tournaments and who were confronted with racism and scorn by tournament organizers and other golfers.

Nothing persuades me that if Nicklaus and/or Palmer had shown respect for fellow professionals and/or displayed a moral concern for others, black golfers like Charlie Sifford, Lee Elder and Pete Brown would not have had to wait for Tiger Woods to become the nuclear explosion that rocked the golf world. From their lofty perches, if Nicklaus and/or Palmer had made it clear they would not play in any tournaments that had the Caucasian clause in effect, the media would have seized upon it and racism on golf courses of America would have been on its way to an ignominious death.

My point should be obvious: Megyn Kelly had an obligation to make it clear that she would, under no circumstances, permit the behavior Greene exhibited on her show. She had an obligation to call Greene’s name-calling what it clearly was and is, i.e., racist and insulting. She should have made it clear that she would not permit racist double standards on her show. But she did not, and for that she deserves the harshest rebuke because we know if any of the comments I referenced elsewhere in this commentary were directed at her, or made by white males, there would be hell to pay.

So until Kelly and Fox News hold Jehmu Greene accountable to the same level Don Imus, Trent Lott and other white males are held, we can assume that Kelly and Fox News believe racism can only come from white males.